


Guardian Angel

by WroughtBetwixt



Series: Thallen Week 2015 [2]
Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, College, Hate Crimes, Hate Speech, Homophobic Language, Kissing, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Canon, Rescue, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-27
Updated: 2015-05-27
Packaged: 2018-04-01 11:20:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4017850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WroughtBetwixt/pseuds/WroughtBetwixt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Barry's visited by an "old friend", a charming stranger comes to the rescue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Guardian Angel

**Author's Note:**

> Just posting a second warning that there's a brief, vague description of an assault in this work, and a homophobic slur. Please don't read if that triggers you. Thank you for reading!

Everyone assumed Barry and Eddie hadn’t met before.  
  
Naturally, everyone assumed wrong. It had been years ago, when Barry was in college going for his first degree; it was supposed to be a new start, a change of pace from the meatheads that had bullied Barry relentlessly his entire life. And for the first three years, things had gone well. He’d gotten a dorm room to himself, made some friends, flirted with some people... and for a while, he was almost happy. He was mid-way through his fourth year, freshly turned 21, when a dark cloud decided to park it’s ass over his life again.  
  
The name of that dark cloud was Jacob Anderson, an old friend of Tony Woodward and just as vicious, if not more-so. Now that he was able to go out with friends, Barry had taken to meeting up with a few biology buddies at a nearby club. It was a lively place, with great drinks and food; it was also well-known for it’s reputation as a club for less-than-heterosexual individuals. Which on one hand was fantastic. Barry had yet to actually come out to anyone as bisexual, and it gave him a chance to mingle without worrying about having to say anything. On the other hand...  
  
“Allen,” the familiar, sneering voice said one night when Barry was leaving. “Long time, no see. Should have figured you for a fag.”  
  
Barry had frozen, recognizing his old tormentor. There were five other guys with him, and Barry was alone. His friends had left hours ago, and fuck, he should have gone with. But it was too late for that now, and all Barry knew to do was shake his head and keep walking. He wasn’t far from the dorms, and there were some people mulling about. Maybe it would be enough to deter Jacob and his new band of goons. Unfortunately, no, it wasn’t. He heard footsteps on the pavement behind him, and a steadily increasing barrage of slurs and threats at his back. Barry didn’t know what to do, so he did what he always did.  
  
He ran.  
  
Bad move, because they were on him like a pack of hyenas after a wounded gazelle. It was like being eleven years old all over again, and all Barry could do was curl into a ball and pray they got bored. He tasted blood. There was ringing in his ears. But suddenly there was a shout above the taunts and mean laughter, and someone yelling ‘cop’ before they scattered and took off. Barry tried to look up, but everything swam a little, and he just let out a little whimper instead.  
  
“Hey,” a soft, masculine voice soothed. “Take it easy. I’m here to help.”  
  
Barry managed to open his eyes, and it was like looking into the sun. The man crouched above him had golden hair that caught the fading light just so, and his strong, wonderfully chiseled jawline was shadowed with just the barest hint of stubble. His eyes were a light, vivid blue, and Barry wasn’t altogether sure if he was dizzy from being beaten or from being held by this self-appointed guardian angel.   
  
The guy cocked his head. “Are you okay? Should I call someone?”  
  
“N-no. I’m okay, I’m just...” Trying to find words, Barry promptly stumbled over all of them and stammered out the first ones that came to mind. “You’re a cop?”  
  
“Ah.” His pale cheeks turned pink, and the stranger grinned. Hot damn. “Not yet. Got a few more classes to go. I’m Eddie Thawne, by the way. Do you know who you are?”  
  
That pulled a small laugh from Barry, though he winced as his split lip began to bleed again. “Barry Allen. Heading into CSI myself after school, with any luck.”  
  
“These your dorms?” Eddie asked, helping Barry sit up and pulling out a handkerchief to press against Barry’s lip.   
  
“Yeah. You go here, too?”  
  
Eddie shook his head. “Just here to have dinner with some friends. I’m from Keystone. Glad I passed by when I did, though. Those guys seriously had it out for you.”  
  
“Straight men. What can you do.” Barry opened and closed his mouth a bit as Eddie’s eyes were focused on his with an intensity Barry hadn’t expected. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to...”  
  
“No need to apologize,” Eddie interrupted gently. A little conspiratorial smile tugged at his lips. “It’s okay. I’ve been there.”   
  
Barry stared back, then realization washed over him. He felt his face flush, and he looked down at his hands. “Oh.”   
  
_Smooth, Allen. Smooth._  
  
But if Eddie was put off by Barry’s lack of eloquence, he didn’t show it. Far from it. He was standing up, offering Barry a hand to help him up. “Let me walk you to your room, anyways. Just in case.”  
  
Accepting Eddies hand, Barry slowly got to his feet. Everything felt okay, though his ribs were a bit sore, and he was scraped up. He nodded, a sick feeling in his stomach at the thought of those guys coming back. “Thanks. I’d like that.”  
  
Curling an arm around Barry’s waist, Eddie let the slimmer man lean on him as they headed towards the dorm rooms. It was a quiet, both falling silent, but Barry caught Eddie glancing at him every so often, and when their gazes met once, Barry thought he felt Eddie’s hand tighten just a little along his hip. It chased away the shadows of what had just happened, replacing the fear with warmth, comfort, and more than a little intrigue. All too soon, of course, they were outside Barry’s door room.   
  
Eddie smiled at him, leaning in the doorway as Barry limped inside. “Here you are, Mister Allen. Safe and sound.”  
  
“Thank you for saving my life, soon-to-be Officer Thawne.” He turned to face Eddie, giving him a smile back. “You’re my hero.”  
  
“No thanks required. It was my pleasure.”  
  
The was a heartbeat of silence, before Eddie tilted his head, leaning closer... just a little. Barry’s pulse skipped. Was this actually happening? But then Barry was kissing him, and oh, it was happening alright. Barry’s eyes closed as Eddie kissed back, slow and careful. The rush of endorphins was amazing, and when Barry pressed Eddie against the doorframe, Eddie’s lips parted to let Barry kiss him deeper. God, that tongue... But it was when their hips brushed that Eddie pulled back, eyes a bit too wide and breathing a bit too fast.  
  
“I should be going,” he whispered. “My friends are probably wondering where I am.”  
  
Barry nodded, looking at the floor. “Of course, yeah. Enjoy your night.”  
  
They didn’t see each other again after that, not for a long while. Barry chalked it up to too much adrenaline on both of their parts, and probably more than a little internalized homophobia on Thawne’s part. It happened a lot, especially for people from conservative families, or people in a hyper-masculine line of work. Like the police, for example. He couldn’t blame the guy for getting nervous, so he treasured the memory and let it go. At least, that was until a couple weeks before the night of the particle accelerator. Barry had been talking to Joe when a familiar voice and a shock of blonde hair had caught Barry’s attention.  
  
“New guy from Keystone,” Joe said as he followed Barry’s line of vision. His tone was flat, and his arms crossed over his chest. “Eddie Thawne. Made detective fast.”  
  
“Seems like a nice enough guy,” Barry answered as casually as possible.  
  
“We’ll see. So, about that case...”  
  
Joe didn’t notice that Eddie had looked their way and spotted Barry. His expression softened, and he gave Barry the smallest of nods. Barry nodded back, then focused on Joe and the file he was holding. He made a mental note to go say hello later, but ‘later’ turned into days... weeks... It was so busy, what with the Mardon brothers back in town. Barry didn’t leave his lab often, and when he did, it was usually rushing off to a crime scene. It didn’t leave much time to talk. But that’s just how things were, in their line of work.  
  
And well, they’d have plenty of time to catch up, wouldn’t they?


End file.
